Jason Del Rey

Recent Posts by Jason Del Rey

Disney’s Anne Sweeney and “Pretty Little Liars'” I. Marlene King: The Full D11 Interview (Video)

We know a big part of Twitter’s business strategy is to woo the TV industry. And if the opinions of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney and “Pretty Little Liars” executive producer I. Marlene King are any indication, it’s paying off.

“It feels like social media is creating must-see TV again,” King said Wednesday at the D11 conference, giving Twitter special props. “We feel like it’s bringing fans to watch the show live again.”

Big live TV numbers, of course, make TV advertisers happy since their commercials are more likely to be viewed than when time-shifting occurs. And happy TV advertisers = happy TV execs.

Want a more serious tone from Sweeney? Ask her, as Kara Swisher did, about Hulu, the on-the-block video platform in which Disney has a stake. And follow that up with a question about Aereo, the IAC-backed online video service currently battling broadcast networks in courts.

“I think it is illegal, opportunistic piracy,” Sweeney said of Aereo.

Here’s the full video:

Full D11 Conference Coverage